Jane und der Drache

Living in the UK I met the only other fan of Jane and the Dragon during a recent visit to Jamaica who watches it from the Caymen Islands. We shared an enthusiasm for the show and the family would marvel at our exchange.

I understand there are at least 26 episodes and I have not seen anywhere near that many so am looking forward to the repeats or investing in a DVD when one is available.

Dragon and Pepper are my favourites followed swiftly in no particular order by all the other characters.

I would have given JATD 10/10 but for the opening song which comes across as a bit smart brat.

Long live Jane and the Dragon. The world will soon yield to this best kept secret in the world.

Hey, I'm 62 yrs old and stumbled onto this unique show Saturdays @ 8AM and now it's gone...where???? The movement of Jane's (and the other character's) hair is mesmerizing. Having no children or grandchildren, cartoons have passed me by and the newer mediums are so sophisticated. I grew up with the old-style flip page animation (sorry, not knowledgebale re: names of styles) which was pretty good compared to later stop-action stuff (boring) but this is hard to take your eyes off of. The subtle movements of real-life are captured and the writers are winners with the sarcasm of Dragon. It was a great way to start off Sats with a laugh (Dragon is a crack-up, reminds me of Alf). Good life lessons for youngsters too.

I discovered this show a few months ago and have been addicted to it ever since. I showed it to my husband, and even he was blown away. We've seen every single episode, and can't wait for more.

"Jane and the Dragon" showcases Weta's incredible animation techniques (also seen in such movies as "Lord of the Rings" and "The Chronicles of Narnia"), which in this case combine lifelike movements--created through sophisticated motion capture technology--with artistic effects that give the show a delightfully unique visual style.

The characters are engaging and diverse, and all of them display both strengths and weaknesses--particularly Jane herself. It is refreshing to see a strong and charismatic heroine that also has clear weak points, and messes up frequently and often spectacularly. Of course, she always learns something by the end of each episode.

The plots are engaging and novel, masterfully juxtaposing delightful comedy with surprisingly compelling drama. Kids can learn along with Jane, gaining insight into important topics such as courage, integrity, and diverse aspects of friendship. Although the plots are always didactic, the show manages not to be boring or tedious for adults to watch.

The only audience I would not recommend "Jane and the Dragon" for (aside from those who have a problem with dung jokes) is very young children, purely for the reason that the show can be somewhat slow-moving compared to other children's shows, having extended scenes of fairly serious dialogue and long, beautiful shots of the fantastically animated scenery. Toddlers may lose interest, and get little out of the often very insightful dialogue. Otherwise, I recommend "Jane" for all ages. It is a pure delight--definitely worth watching. Sit down with your kids and enjoy!

At first look I thought this was going to be awful - the look of the animation is pretty much as you'd see in a computer game. However, within 2 minutes my 3 year old daughter and I were hooked. Motion capture techniques really bring the animation alive - it's done by Weta, who did the Lord of the Rings CGI so you know it's going to be expressive, though of course it's not got the LOTR budget, hence the computer game look.

The script is full of dry humour - especially Dragon - which makes this entertaining for parents as well as kids. The stories have morals of sorts, but not in a Disney-like "hit 'em over the head with it" way. The characters are diverse and well observed - the king winds me up, but I think he's kind of supposed to.

Check it out on Milkshake on C5, weekend mornings at the moment. I don't know if it will come out on DVD in the UK in the near future, if at all. However, go to the ABC Australia shop (google "Jane and the Dragon DVD" to find it) and you can buy there for the equivalent of about £13.50 per DVD of three episodes incl. postage. There are two available at the time of writing.

Fabulous and highly recommended, though I have to admit my wife loathes it!

I stumbled across this show one Saturday morning, and was thoroughly impressed. It is something completely unique and refreshing that much of children's programming has been lacking of late. The main characters are far from flat or one-dimensional--they have history, issues, and deal with pretty serious moral or ethical issues that many young kids might face in their own lives. And yes, they do tend to come away unscathed, learning a lesson about doing the right thing, but there are moments of tension and gravity along the way, and the lessons are far from heavy-handed. The animation is a bit different than most of the other CGI shows around, but I like it--it looks like a page from a children's storybook brought to life. The music is upbeat but unobtrusive, and the dialogue is actually pretty funny--there are several jokes (especially from Dragon) that are really funny, even for adults. I highly recommend taking a look with your kids--you won't regret it!